Renaissance Technologies LLC Takes $23.29 Million Position in International Paper Company $IP

Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 652,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,294,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 0.12% of International Paper at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of IP. Inceptionr LLC boosted its stake in International Paper by 797.6% in the first quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 48,416 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,728,000 after purchasing an additional 43,022 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in International Paper by 46.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 113,976 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,069,000 after buying an additional 36,075 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in International Paper by 47.4% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 461,282 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,468,000 after acquiring an additional 148,277 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in International Paper by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 98,789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,527,000 after acquiring an additional 6,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Levin Capital Strategies L.P. bought a new position in shares of International Paper in the first quarter worth about $294,000. Institutional investors own 81.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of International Paper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on International Paper from $36.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on International Paper from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded International Paper from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $51.00 to $61.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on International Paper from $40.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.36.

International Paper Price Performance

Shares of IP opened at $42.59 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $22.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.70 and a beta of 0.94. International Paper Company has a 1 year low of $29.26 and a 1 year high of $54.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $36.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

International Paper (NYSE:IP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.03). International Paper had a negative net margin of 13.42% and a negative return on equity of 0.49%. The firm had revenue of $5.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that International Paper Company will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current year.

International Paper Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $0.4625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. International Paper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -29.09%.

Key Stories Impacting International Paper

Here are the key news stories impacting International Paper this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded IP to Overweight and raised its price target to $61 from $51, citing an improving U.S. linerboard pricing cycle. The new target implies substantial upside from recent trading levels. International Paper raised at JP Morgan on improving US linerboard pricing cycle
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2026 EPS estimate to $1.34 from $1.32, its Q4 2026 estimate to $0.75 from $0.69, its Q1 2027 estimate to $0.58 from $0.56, and its FY2028 forecast to $3.35 from $3.25. These increases suggest longer-term earnings improvement potential.
• Neutral Sentiment: International Paper is scheduled to report earnings tomorrow. The report could provide important evidence on pricing, demand, margins and the company’s outlook. International Paper reports earnings tomorrow: What to expect
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks maintained a “Hold” rating. Its earnings revisions were mixed, with some longer-term upgrades offset by changes to individual quarterly forecasts.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut its Q2 2026 EPS forecast to a loss of $0.04 from a loss of $0.02 and reduced its Q3 2026 estimate to $0.48 from $0.51. The lowered near-term forecasts could weigh on sentiment before the earnings release.
• Negative Sentiment: Put-option volume surged to 16,246 contracts, about 341% above average. While options activity does not guarantee a decline, it signals increased hedging or bearish speculation around IP.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Paper

In other news, Director Scott Tozier purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $31.30 per share, with a total value of $313,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 10,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $313,782.50. This represents a 40,000.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

International Paper Company Profile

International Paper is a global producer of renewable fiber-based products, focused primarily on pulp, paper, and packaging. The company manufactures containerboard and corrugated packaging used for shipping and retail display, as well as a range of specialty papers and pulp products that serve industrial, consumer goods, and e-commerce customers. Its product portfolio is oriented toward large-scale packaging solutions, tissue and paper grades, and raw pulp for a variety of manufacturing uses.

Founded in 1898, International Paper is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, and is one of the largest and longest-established companies in the forest products sector.